Luke Littler holds off Price 18-9 to defend World Matchplay, sets tournament average record of 111.04
The 19-year-old Englishman demolished Gerwyn Price in Blackpool, becoming only the third player to defend the Matchplay crown and keeping alive his bid for a clean sweep of 2026 majors.
Dominant display
Luke Littler needed barely an hour to dismantle Gerwyn Price 18-9 in Blackpool, successfully defending the World Matchplay title he first won in 2025. The world number one opened a 5-1 lead early and never let Price, the seventh seed, settle. Price posted a three-dart average of 104.97, a figure that would win most finals, yet found himself overwhelmed by Littler's relentless scoring. The victory places Littler alongside Phil Taylor and Michael van Gerwen as only the third man to win back-to-back Matchplay titles. It also keeps him on course for a clean sweep of the major trophies in 2026, having already collected the World Championship, UK Open, Premier League and the Masters.
- Luke Littler defeats Dirk van Duijvenbode 17-5
- Gerwyn Price defeats Gian van Veen 17-10
- Littler defeats Price 18-9 to retain the title
Record-breaking averages
The statistics from the week re-wrote the tournament record books. Littler's average across five matches reached 111.04, smashing Taylor's previous mark of 106.31 that had stood since 2010. In the final itself he averaged 111.53, bettering Taylor's final record of 111.23 set against Adrian Lewis in 2013. He also hit 66 maximum 180s during the tournament, breaking his own competition record from the previous year, with 12 of them coming in the final alone.
- Phil Taylor (2010)
- 106.31 average
- Luke Littler (2026)
- 111.04 average
- Phil Taylor (2013)
- 111.23 average
- Luke Littler (2026)
- 111.53 average
'Best version of myself'
Littler described the week as one of the finest of his career but insisted more improvement lies ahead.
It was a crazy week. It was one of the best weeks of my life.
I can still get better. I can get a lot better. Through the matches, I was up to a 120 average at one point and I didn't make it stick. Maybe in a few years' time I will stick it and go up to a 120 average.
The champion, who collected £225,000 in prize money, now leads the PDC order of merit by more than £2.1 million over Luke Humphries. Price, who rose to fourth in the rankings and reclaimed the Welsh number one spot, called his opponent a generational talent.
Luke is one in a million. I think I played pretty decent. In that game I missed a couple of opportunities but the bull checkouts, the 167, it was a big turning point even though it was early in the game.
Women's Matchplay thriller
Earlier in the evening, Beau Greaves defeated Fallon Sherrock 6-5 in a deciding leg to secure her third Women's World Matchplay title in four years. Greaves opened with checkouts of 148 and 144 in successive legs but let a 5-3 lead slip as Sherrock forced a decider. A 180 from Sherrock in the final leg was answered by a maximum from Greaves, who set up 56 and took out the winning double to end the contest.
I'm not one to celebrate but I just felt the relief after winning. To hit that last dart was just an outpouring of relief. I am just so happy to win.
The victory added to a historic 2026 for the 22-year-old from Doncaster, who in April became the first woman to win a PDC ranking title by beating Michael Smith, and in February became the first woman to hit a nine-dart finish on the PDC ProTour by defeating Mensur Suljovic.
Clean sweep in sight
Littler's Matchplay success leaves the teenager well-placed to claim every major title this year. He will soon defend the Grand Slam of Darts, the Grand Prix and the Players Championship Finals. The dominance has drawn comparisons with the greatest eras of the sport, though Littler himself sees no ceiling.
The main goal was to win every major once. I don't know how many years are left in me. We're still only two and a half years into my professional career. It's far from done.
